If you follow the news with even a passing interest, you've almost certainly heard about the recent controversy surrounding famed New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd. It seems that Dowd, who is known for her scathing political commentaries, plagiarized nearly an entire paragraph from the popular blog Talking Points Memo (TPM) in her latest column. TPM is written by Josh Marshall.
Here are the two paragraphs, and you can instantly see the similarities.
Dowd's paragraph in the Times: More and more the timeline is raising the question of why, if the torture was to prevent terrorist attacks, it seemed to happen mainly during the period when the Bush crowd was looking for what was essentially political information to justify the invasion of Iraq.
Marshall's paragraph in his TPM blog: More and more the timeline is raising the question of why, if the torture was to prevent terrorist attacks, it seemed to happen mainly during the period when we were looking for what was essentially political information to justify the invasion of Iraq.
Dowd contends that the copied words were an inadvertent, honest mistake, and you can decide whether or not she is being truthful. It's not my goal with this post to determine her guilt or innocence.
The bigger issue for this post is pointing out the tremendous lesson to be learned or reaffirmed from this case: as a lawyer doing his or her own marketing or perhaps as a lawyer who has hired a person to handle your marketing, you must be absolutely certain that you and/or your hired help do not copy and paste other's words and use them without attribution. This applies to all media you may use such as the firm website, any blogs, lawyer articles posted on the Web, the firm's newsletter, etc.
Also, if you are relying on someone else's article or blog post as source material (which is fine), you have to change enough of it to legitimately make it your own. I've heard varying percentages as to how much you need to change, but suffice to say that you can't change one or two words and assume that you've made it your own.
Bottom line - a plagiarism offense, whether intentional or not, can have serious negative ramifications for your practice. The Web is a wonderful tool for marketing your practice, but it can also serve to quickly damage a firm's reputation if the online community finds out that your firm has been pilfering other people's words.
Be vigilant, especially if you outsource your blogging, article writing or website content.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
My Top Ten Legal or Courtroom Movies
Having worked with lawyers for many years, I've come across all sorts of interesting life stories and compelling personalities. However, nothing can quite compare to the stories that Hollywood can produce about lawyers and law firms.
For today's post I decided to have a little bit of fun and list my favorite movies that focus on lawyers or the courtroom.
Hope the list brings back some memories and inspires you to update your queue on Netflix or make a run to your nearest Blockbuster.
Here's the list:
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. A Few Good Men
3. Michael Clayton
4. A Time to Kill
5. Primal Fear
6. Presumed Innocent
7. My Cousin Vinny
8. In Cold Blood
9. The Verdict
10. The Rainmaker
Agree? Disagree? Let me know your thoughts.
If you would like to see another point of view, the American Film Institute produced a list of what it considered the top 10 courtroom dramas, and it can be found here.
For today's post I decided to have a little bit of fun and list my favorite movies that focus on lawyers or the courtroom.
Hope the list brings back some memories and inspires you to update your queue on Netflix or make a run to your nearest Blockbuster.
Here's the list:
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. A Few Good Men
3. Michael Clayton
4. A Time to Kill
5. Primal Fear
6. Presumed Innocent
7. My Cousin Vinny
8. In Cold Blood
9. The Verdict
10. The Rainmaker
Agree? Disagree? Let me know your thoughts.
If you would like to see another point of view, the American Film Institute produced a list of what it considered the top 10 courtroom dramas, and it can be found here.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Twitter in Trouble?
Great blog post from Larry Bodine at http://blog.larrybodine.com/2009/05/articles/tech/60-of-twitter-users-quit-after-a-month/#pings. The post seems to reflect exactly what I am seeing with my lawyer clients and colleagues.
Most people seem to be curious about Twitter at first but then quickly lose interest. Frankly, I'm surprised that Facebook is making so many dramatic changes to its design and structure in an effort to be more like Twitter. I think Twitter faces a serious challenge to even remain relevant in the months and years ahead.
That being said, maintain your Twitter presence if you've already signed up. Used effectively, I've seen Twitter generate a good amount of new visitors to lawyer websites each month. My main concern, like Larry, is how long Twitter can keep it up.
Most people seem to be curious about Twitter at first but then quickly lose interest. Frankly, I'm surprised that Facebook is making so many dramatic changes to its design and structure in an effort to be more like Twitter. I think Twitter faces a serious challenge to even remain relevant in the months and years ahead.
That being said, maintain your Twitter presence if you've already signed up. Used effectively, I've seen Twitter generate a good amount of new visitors to lawyer websites each month. My main concern, like Larry, is how long Twitter can keep it up.
Must-Read Book for Lawyers on Web Marketing
Recently read the book The New Rules of Marketing and PR, by David Meerman Scott. It’s a primer on how to use news releases, blogs, podcasting, viral marketing, and online media to reach buyers directly.
Scott wrote the book to help illustrate how profoundly the Web has changed marketing in recent years and he outlines a straightforward program to help readers harness the power of the Web to connect with their clients. As Scott consistently points out, the key is clearly defining your audience and then producing interesting, useful content that focuses on them rather than you.
This book is perfect for lawyers who are looking for a way to compete with the big spenders without actually spending big money. Plus, you don’t need to have all sorts of technical knowledge and expertise to implement the concepts that Scott presents here.
With revised and updated sections on social media, the book remains relevant and topical despite the rapid changes in the online world. Scott’s real-world examples and engaging writing style make this an accessible and enjoyable book to read, and I highly recommend it.
You can also check out Scott's blog at http://www.webinknow.com/ for additional information and tips on how to effectively market using the Web.
Scott wrote the book to help illustrate how profoundly the Web has changed marketing in recent years and he outlines a straightforward program to help readers harness the power of the Web to connect with their clients. As Scott consistently points out, the key is clearly defining your audience and then producing interesting, useful content that focuses on them rather than you.
This book is perfect for lawyers who are looking for a way to compete with the big spenders without actually spending big money. Plus, you don’t need to have all sorts of technical knowledge and expertise to implement the concepts that Scott presents here.
With revised and updated sections on social media, the book remains relevant and topical despite the rapid changes in the online world. Scott’s real-world examples and engaging writing style make this an accessible and enjoyable book to read, and I highly recommend it.
You can also check out Scott's blog at http://www.webinknow.com/ for additional information and tips on how to effectively market using the Web.
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